K.Bradbury

tART – K.Bradbury to accompany our Magnificent 7s mixtape we’ve enlisted the help of a close friend, Keith Bradbury. His photos convey the epic feel that being in the great out doors is all about, were not saying he’s a cowboy but he’s been to some pretty remote places in his quest for bigger and bigger rocks. Most of these photos were taken in the wild wild west of California, Mongolia and the Mighty Peaks near Sheffield, we hope you like them as much as we do.

K.Bradbury – I’ve been graciously asked by MountainRescue to write a little about myself and I hope it gives you a deeper insight into the man behind the lens.

I was born in a small and remote village called Tahsis, which is situated in a remote fjord in BC, Canada. Photography was something I fell into quite by accident when a photographer by the name of Peter Wheeler passed through our village in the early 80’s. I would watch him wander the vast landscapes just looking, pondering, and then eventually photographing the world around him. His photographs always communicated so much more that simply their subject. To me his photographs gave his view of how things looked and it didn’t always appear the same to my naked (and as yet untrained) eye.

Over the next few years I spent much time simply wandering, actually trying to be a little like Peter. However, I didn’t yet have the camera I so desired, and all the photographs I took at the time were etched into my mind, recorded for the day when I could come back and try to capture the world as I was witnessing it. It was enough for me to simply remember the images, and each night I would recount the album that was in my head. In some ways it was actually an early version of Photoshop, because in my mind I could edit each picture slightly, try to improve upon it’s composition, it’s light, it’s representation of the idea I was trying to convey.

I eventually was able to get my own camera when I moved South, to the USA. All my preparation was soon realised as I shot film after film. I was lucky enough to be able to travel a fair deal, witness some awesome scenery, and try to capture what it was I saw. It was also around this time that I fell for my second great passion, Rock Climbing. It had always seemed so natural to me to want to ever explore upwards the realms that seemed unattainable. Gradually the twin loves of photography and rock climbing came together, and I realised I was able to express one through the other, and vice versa.

I still don’t think I’ve ever taken a good photo, nothing can convey the intensity of the images I see through my two eyes. But I’m trying, constantly trying to capture it, to be able to honestly express myself through a still image. An image that at first seems still then slowly begins to shimmer with movement and progress. I hope you enjoy these pictures, as I really enjoyed taking them. Thanks to MountainRescue, where the beats are as fresh as English cheese”

K.Bradbury… 29/04/06.

To View Keith’s photos CLICK HERE